Another Dangerous Fentanyl, DEA Says

(CN) — Killer synthetic opioid drug furanyl fentanyl will temporarily be placed into schedule I, the most restrictive level, of the Schedules of Controlled Substances, the United States Drug Enforcement Administration said Tuesday. Schedule I rules under the Controlled Substances Act regulate the drugs that the DEA considers the most dangerous. Controlled substances have the potential for abuse and dependence and are controlled to protect the public health and safety. The DEA knows of at least 128 confirmed fatalities associated with furanyl fentanyl, the notice stated. “It is likely that the prevalence of furanyl fentanyl in opioid analgesic-related emergency room admissions and deaths is underreported as standard immunoassays may not differentiate this substance from fentanyl,” the notice added. Information on the known 2015 and 2016 deaths was collected from personal communications or toxicology and medical examiner reports the DEA received. The deaths were reported from five states—Illinois (36), Maryland (41), New Jersey (1), North Carolina (49), and Ohio (1). Also, data analysis platforms STARLiMS and NFLIS have a total of 116 drug reports in which furanyl fentanyl was identified in drug exhibits submitted to forensic laboratories in 2016 from law enforcement encounters in California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Maryland, Montana, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia. The placement of furanyl fentanyl into schedule I is based on the DEA Administrator’s finding that it is necessary to avoid an imminent hazard to the public safety, according to the notice. Any final order will impose administrative, civil, and criminal sanctions and regulatory controls on the manufacture, distribution, possession, importation, exportation, research, and conducting of instructional activities of this synthetic opioid, the notice states. This notice may be followed by a final order, which would be published in the Federal Register and may not be effective for 30 days after publication.